©1987
The Center for Wooden Boats—Volume 9, Number 2 - M a r . - A p r . 1987—25¢
Some Thoughts On Replicas and the Necessity of Saving the Real Thing After her stay at E x p o , the replica of Drake's Golden Hinde spent a month receiving visitors at the end of the H . C . Henry Pier next to Waterway 4. She received a lot of visitors, day and night. People called the C W B asking for information about the "tall ship," the "windjammer," even "the Spanish pirate galleon," a misnomer that must have had D r a k e spinning in his h a m m o c k at the bottom of N o m b r e Dios Bay. T h e landsmen and their families whose cars filled Benjamin's, Burger King's and the C W B ' s parking lots got a good idea of the life of an Elizabethan sailor: the cramped conditions, the appalling sanitation, the loathsome food. M a n y were surprised that a ship that circumnavigated the globe was so small. Everybody wondered how D r a k e ever did what he did, terrorizing the Spanish M a i n with such meager resources. A ship like the Hinde helps us realize that in Drake's day, the Spanish population was probably that of, say, Ballard, spread pretty thin. So a lot of folks got a "gee w h i z " look at history. F o r a maritime historian, there were some problems. T h e first question is why the Hinde? She was an historic ship certainly, possibly the first to establish England's dominion of the seas. But Drake's Revenge was a m u c h more developed example of the race-built ship, responsible for the defeat of the A r m a d a . A n d the defeat of the A r m a d a was what really made England the preeminent naval power. T h e r e were no plans for the Hinde, which was recreated from paintings and woodcuts of similar vessels. So what we have is not a replica of the specific ship but one generally like it. Frankly, if the current replica is as accurate as its creators claim, why does it need additional sponsons for stability? We may not know too m u c h about what the Hinde really looked like, but the best experts are sure Sir Francis didn't have sponsons. 'Tween
decks,
the
Hinde
smells
just
like
Balclutha, Cutty Sark a n d the Victory: a heady amalgam of bilge, paint, cordage, tar, and slightly mildewed canvas. Bulkheads, overhead, a n d the gundeck are painted the traditional dark m a r o o n red, selected to hide blood during a hot encounter. However, we're sure the Elizabethan shipwrights didn't use wood as green as the deckbeams obviously were when they were put into the replica. Huge checks ran their length a n d most of the stanchions had gapped away from them. Prowling around the stern reveals a very modern rudder and the concealed presence of an engine. We realize that keeping the Hinde afloat financially means meeting schedules: at E x p o , in Seattle, T a c o m a , and other Puget S o u n d ports. Still, every divergence from their attempts at authenticity weakens the case for replica ships. C o n t r a s t Hinde with Wawona. T h e Wawona may be in need of repair. She may sag in spots. S h e was never a crucial part of international relations, being a humble merchantman instead of a warship. S h e needs work. But, and this is a big but, she's undeniably real. H e r timbers are of a w o o d unmilled in these latter days. L o s e Wawona and where are we going to find timber for a
replica? T h e fox-tailed trunnels that fasten her are the way her planks were fastened, not a guess at the way she was fastened. Visit the ships at the National Maritime M u s e u m at Hyde Park Pier in San Francisco. T h e y may also be in shaky shape, but they too have the undeniable impact of reality. T h e r e is no supposition about them. If there are hooks for clothes a n d foul weather gear in the quarters, it's because they were there when the ships were in service. If there are pegs for clothes, it's because the sailors preferred pegs... or because the shipowners were cheap. If there's a jingus that nobody can figure out a use for, it means that we don't know as m u c h as we think
we do and we need more research. Replicas like Golden Hinde, the Mayflower, a n d the Pride of Baltimore are undeniably the only way we're going to see their like nowadays. But they can't answer our questions about how they were really constructed. T h e y have no enigmatic detail to wonder over, no puzzling fittings whose use has been lost, no spur to further research. T h e y seem a little smug about it.
You Can't Have One Without the Other
Vancouver's assessment of the geography and flora of this region. Puget Sound's first cash flow came because of the vast quantity of timber — high quality fir, cedar, and spruce — and because these trees grew on the edge of protected deep water. Puget S o u n d settlers first earned money with sawmill and sailing vessel. As each mill was established, the ships followed immediately. O l d photos show a forest of masts, yards, booms, gaffs, and rigging, surrounded by the nature-made forests, with a steam sawmill a n d pier in the center of it all.
In his 1792 voyage of exploration, Captain G e o r g e V a n c o u v e r viewed the steep hillsides and impenetrable forests of the Pacific Northwest's sounds and fiords, and declared it "useless" country. Puget Sound's first white settlers came to claim a homestead and establish a survival farm. In the process of finding even a postage stamp parcel of flat land and clearing the gargantuan trees, they came to agree with
It was fun to tour the Hinde. S h e had lessons for people who know little or nothing about ships or maritime history. But for the real information, in depth and in detail, we must save our historic ships. Because they're real.
Sailing vessels carried Northwest timber to all
corners of the Pacific. In the Christmas season of 1917, both the Wawona and the schooner John A. were unloading in Fiji. But by then the sailing fleet was pretty much obsolete, with steam and diesel vessels, railroads, and trucks offering more efficient transportation. The sailing commercial vessels were moored in backwaters, row on row of proud schooners, ships, barks and barquentines, some barely 20 years old, and already useless as yesterday's newspaper. Some were sold for ten cents on the dollar and converted to barges. Others were sold for even less, to be sunk as breakwaters or beached and burned for the pittance of metal that could be salvaged. There was no special order of destruction for these vessels. No one took inventory and rated them by best of type, earmarked to be preserved. No one is to blame. Discarding worn out artifacts has been the human rule rather than the exception. Village middens have provided ecstasy to archaeologists and profit to antique dealers. T h e only example of a watercraft deliberately preserved for the future is Cheop's barge, and what a treasure to still have a 5,000-year-old vessel! Today, through sheer accident, there are two Northwest lumber and codfishing schooners still afloat. O n e , the CA. Thayer, was rescued from oblivion in a cove in H o o d C a n a l in 1957 and sailed to San Francisco where she is part of the exhibit fleet of the National Maritime Museum. The other, Wawona, is miraculously still in Seattle, moored at a site on the south end of Lake Union that was the once bustling Brace & Harcourt steam lumber mill. An accident? This is the site now being planned as Seattle's newest waterfront park. There is no other commercial sailing vessel afloat in Puget Sound. There is no other vessel in the Northwest that carried our lumber and fished for cod — two most essential plateaus of this region's economy. Wawona was the first vessel recorded in the National Register of Historic Structures. She leads the list of endangered historic vessels in the Northwest. Losing Wawona would be simply inexcusable. To keep Wawona as a public exhibit requires protected moorage with easy public access. South L a k e Union is probably the only and last location for Wawona that fits these requirements. It is one of the few spots in Seattle where large public gatherings such as our Annual Wooden Boat Festival and the crowds that came in January to see the Golden Hinde, have not elicited complaints from the neighbors. There is one other essential ingredient in preservation of W a w o n a , or any other historic vessel — a place alongside to provide ship maintenance. Wooden vessels and preventative maintenance are as inseparable as gourmet foods shops and B M W s ; Rolex watches and G u c c i loafers. The traditional yards that service wooden vessels are disappearing at an alarming rate. As a rule of thumb, every new waterside restaurant equals one less boatshop. T h e fewer shops, the fewer people practicing the skills of wooden vessel repair and maintenance. Therefore, we must provide for one place where our maritime legacy can be preserved — historic vessels, and the skills to maintain them. Mystic Seaport, a world class maritime museum, had no special preservation program for their vessels until they had to because of their deteriorating state. At that point they built their own ship yard, and trained their own crew for there were no other means left. The preservation yard can be as attractive and
Books And Boats On Guemes Island Official Seattle has several Sister Cities, one in Japan, one in C h i n a , and one in Nicaragua. Wooden-boat-loving Seattle has a pair of sister cities, Anacortes and Port Townsend. Anacortes has a "sister island," Guemes, and Guemes Island is home to the Northwest's newest wooden boat industry, Brion Toss's Rigging Loft and Knot Shoppe. The loft is indeed a loft, the upper story of a barn with nice southern exposure giving good light and a very distracting view of Guemes Channel and the passing shipping. Brion had a length of Coaster's rigging stretched between vise and riggers mast. (A waist-tall 6 X 6 with the improbable name of Wylie Post. Emily Post is currently in storage.) Besides the Murray Peterson classic, Brion is renewing rigging on Sophia Christina and working on a few others as they appear. But what he's really gearing up for is a new book. "I've been taking notes and collecting ideas for three years," he explained while he fashioned a Shatstrop (see box). "In Rigger's Apprentice I dealt with themes that illustrated detailed techniques. In the new book I want to use specific details to illustrate themes. It's going to be a very practical book with lots of very specialized information." Chapter headings include Look Aloft Look A l o w , on how to survey rigging, loft Procedures, Living Aloft (bosun's chairs and rigging safety), even Kevlar splicing techniques. There are alot of knots that have people's names. "I'm opposed to people naming knots", Brion informative to the public as the vessels it preserves. If we look at the photos of Wawona and her sister ships tied up at piers in the Northwest, we know what the yard should look like — a small pier and a few small, low, simple wooden structures to house the office, carpenter's shop, layout, and storage. There will be stacks of timber air drying. This little campus of about six buildings, none larger than 1000 square feet, will take up about an acre of space. No rusty heaps of old engines, no serrated roofed, smoke belching factory. Approximately three carpenters will be employed with part time paid and volunteer staff. The public could see ongoing restoration and repair work. There could be seminars and workshops giving the public an opportunity to learn old skills and, of course, demonstrations and public participation sessions at special events. T h e preservation yard would be a living replica of the sort of place servicing Wawona and her contemporaries in their working days. It will be visitor friendly. There will be the staccato of riveting at the boatshop, the sharp ring of caulking hammer against iron, the old time smells of pine tar and linseed oil, glowing coals at the shipsmith shop, clouds of steam as frames are bent to fit. The concept of keeping our maritime heritage afloat and keeping the skills preserved is the main bower and heavy hawser of C W B . We have demonstrated how interesting it is to see and learn by direct experience. We have set examples of the scale and details of the appropriate buildings. We have sounded and buoyed the passage, developing a piece of public waterfront for public access and education, without cost to the city. If it works for the little boats of our past, it will work for the large vessels. Save the vessels. Save the skills. It's our legacy. It's our imperative. It's our last chance. — D i c k Wagner
complained. Matthew Walker, father of the first named knot, was a famous rigger and dockyard supervisor who invented a lot of knots. He only put his name on one. Now anybody who dreams up a new knot immediately puts his name on it. It's no big thing to invent a new knot. I've done it. But once they're named, I guess we're stuck with it.' To show what he meant by specific detail, he exhibited a soft eye he'd just leathered. Normally, once the leather has been cut to size and punched, the rigger begins on one end and using the baseball stitch, sews it snugly down. This means that with every stitch, the rigger must draw all the twine through each awl hole. "It's a real problem maintaining just the right tension," explained Brion. " T h e ends of the leather are hard to keep exactly even. Sometimes the leather comes right down to the throat of the splice on one side and misses by an inch on the
A Short Cruise In Echo Editor's Note: Last issue Bob Worthington wrote a eulogy for the late Al Giles. Here's an account of a cruise in Al's last tug. Budd Inlet was calm, only a light breeze ruffled water the color of the grey sky above. Fred Giles, Herb A m e s , and I went through the systematic process of checking all of Echo's functions before casting off her lines and heading up the bay that early December morning. We were taking her out for a run, just to give her some exercise. Albert Giles built Echo, his last creation, as a steam powered fantail tug; his own design. He was a working waterman, tugboats were Al's style, and Echo was not the first, though perhaps his best. She is carvel-planked, mahogany on steam bent oak frames, a shining example of the traditional art. A l , however, was not adverse to using modern methods and materials to advantage, for Echo's deck is double-layered marine plywood, covered with epoxy and
detachable outriggers which C a r l re-engineered more to his satisfaction. Planked with Red cedar over oak and with locust supports to secure the riggers to, Slipper could be considered a piece of furniture if its every line didn't proclaim speed and motion. Usually fine rowing boats have a vertical keel which helps them track. However, Slipper has a narrow plank keel, giving it a small flat bottom. For a boat that will spend some time beached, it's a good feature. It also means that in storage, the boat can sit on a couple of blocks just high enough to keep it off the ground, not in a special cradle or on a trailer. Since C a r l keeps Slipper in the 3 foot crawlspace under his house, that's an important consideration.
other. But if you start sewing from the center of the leather down both sides of the splice in turn you only need to pull half the twine through and things are easier to keep even. A n d look here," he said with the grin of someone who has been vindicated by an outside expert, "the chevrons of the stitch give you a pretty little diamond right
A New-Age Selvagee Explained Dear Editor: While I admit to being somewhat delinquent in sending you Selvagee information, I was stung to read that the delay might have been due to my belief that as an author I "couldn't afford to give these things away free" (see Jan. '87 Shavings). It is true that I customarily send articles to magazines which respond with a check by return mail (as opposed to your publication, which expects its authors to accompany their articles with checks of their own for C W B dues), but I'm not yet entirely avaricious about these things. Really. Fits of unbridled evangelical, nonmercenary, speakingof-the-good-word generosity do on occasion overwhelm me, and the spirit is upon me even now. So let me tell you about the Solid-Hollow, Ambi-Tailed (S.H.A.T.) Strop, a sort of post
fiberglass, coated with that most wonderful nonskid material, Spantex. Last spring, Fred and I helped his father remove the steam plant prior to repowering with a six cylinder 135hp Perkins diesel. The steam engine had given him continuous grief, and when it threw a rod, he was happy to accept our offer of assistance in making the change. I am glad we did, for he and his wife, Lottie, were then able to enjoy a month-long cruise up sound and through the San J u a n Islands. Echo's diesel ran smoothly as Fred carefully backed her out of the slip at East Bay Marina, where she was berthed for the winter. Her normal home was the mooring just offshore from Giles Landing, the site of A l ' s N o r t h Olympia Boatworks and the family home. As we passed the channel buoy. Fred brought the engine up to 1675 rpm. Echo's cruising speed of about seven knots She moved easily through the water, squatting slightly at the stern as she took advantage of her fantail counter by lengthening her waterline to match her hull speed.
here at the top." After finishing the strop, we went to C a r l Meinzinger's to see his new rowing skiff Slipper. C a r l took his basic design from Liz, a boat of K e n Basset's which Onion River Boatworks builds. Fine, with a good entry and a long run Slipper is low to the water and rows with a pair of
At the transom is the "special touch" that exists somewhere on every wooden boat. Slipper's wineglass transom is raked aft at about 30 degrees and the top edge is an uncompromising 90 degrees from the face. However, at the corners, the rising line of the sheer is blended into the top of the transom in a smooth turn of 45 degrees. Running a finger from transom to sheer and back again is like running a hand around the curve of a Christopher W r e n Bannister. Carl will be racing Slipper in the next O A R S event on April 5 (six-mile) predicted log race for rowboats.
modern selvagee that one can make in just a few minutes from a bit of double-braid rope. A shatstrop can do anything a Selvagee can, and in addition it provides some rational justification for the existence of double braid. Here's the recipe: Apply a Constrictor Knot or light seizing to the middle of a 4' - 5' length of 3/8" rope (vary scantlings according to job and vessel size; this size is yacht-proportioned). Mark the rope 3" - 4" on either side of the center and extract the core at these points by bending the rope sharply, then using an awl to push the cover yarns to either side, then prying the core out. Mark the core where it exits, then slide the cover up against the Constrictor and cut the core in a long taper above the marks. Slide the cover back and the ends of the core will disappear inside. Apply a stout seizing to the solid section to form an eye, preferably around a thimble, and whip the ends of the tails. Done. The hollow tails will lie flat against a stroppee
for a stronger, gentler grip than solid rope could give, while the solid section forms a more durable, distortion free eye and seizing bearing than hollow rope would. The shatstrop is currently being field-tested in the South Pacific, where the crew of Boston Light use it mostly to sling hammocks and awnings from the shrouds so they can rock gently to sleep in those starry, spicescented nights... There are some other new double braid adaptations but I, uh, already sold a piece about them to a magazine. Fair leads, Brion Toss (Editor's note: The selvagee discussed last issue was middled around the work and came down to two eyes which were shackled together. The Shatstrop starts with an eye. It's two tails are wrapped up the work in the same overlapping manner as the traditional selvagee. Near their end they should be wrapped back on themselves a turn and tied with a single overhand knot.)
With her dry stack coupled to a Mac muffler, the engine ran quietly enough to converse in normal voices, there in the wheelhouse, though we found little need to speak. A l l was well; she handled with ease as we took turns at the helm, although we did note that the hydraulic steering system seemed in need of bleeding, as there was some slippage that caused us to steer constantly to starboard. I had my first ride aboard Echo only a few weeks before, although I had watched her construction from the nearly finished hull to her completion, and had attended her launching on M a r c h 18, 1984. The tug Sandman, which had benefited from Albert's skill in 1944 with a reengine and a new house, was there to pull Echo off the ways in the dim light of dawn. She sat perfectly on her lines, no leaks, no fuss. A l l was with us on the occasion of my first ride, two and a half years later, and as always, I felt at ease in the presence of his consummate skill.
curve of her forward windows. This line is eyesweet and of perfect proportion. A l l of Echo's lines complement the whole. Nothing is out of place or awkward. In the simple, clean style of a workboat, her yacht quality craftsmanship is all the more apparent. She is truly the culmination of a master builder's career, and a fitting monument to his art. Fred Steered a circle in front of Giles Landing, offering a salute to Lottie, who stood waving from the shore. "That was nice, and sad too," she said later, when we returned to her home after our cruise. It takes both a patient and a stronghearted woman to share the life of a boatbuilder. Fred is now Echo's custodian; he says the boat belongs to the family, and he will give her the care she deserves. He is an excellent craftsman and artist; much of Echo bears his workmanship, and with the knowledge and skills developed growing up on the water and in a boat shop, I know Echo is in good hands.
Standing in the wheelhouse, your eye is automatically drawn to the compound elliptical
Members Bring Lifelong Experience to Simplified Boatbuilding by C h a s Dowd Three of the C W B ' s senior members are working with a retired University of Washington Forestry professor to give the Third World good wood boats. Rollo England, Paul F o r d , and Rowland Messer are trying to find the best way to use a high tech glue developed for U . S . Navy minesweepers in a low-tech environment. The Third W o r l d has always relied on boats. With poor or nonexistent roads, boats on rivers are a vital means of transport for both people and
produce. Just offshore is a wealth of protein, a crucial adjunct to diets which otherwise are mostly starch and carbohydrates. Yet boatbuilding in the T h i r d W o r l d is rapidly approaching a crisis. The big trees suitable for traditional dugouts are vanishing, sold on the export market or simply destroyed in the push to clear agricultural land. Capital is as scarce as good wood. A l l but the simplest tools are unavailable Fasteners—copper, bronze, or tripledip galvanized—are expensive, unavailable, and unsuited to the woods, construction techniques, and social traditions of a Belize boatbuilder. Professor Ben Bryant has been interested in technology for the Third W o r l d for a long time. His non-profit corporation A T T A , Appropriate Technology Transfer Associates, has several other projects underway including hardboard and roofing paper for home construction made from locally available agricultural waste. It was Rollo England who got him involved in wooden boats.
Rollo, chafing in retirement after 40 years as a wood technologist for the Puget Sound Navy Y a r d , called his former teacher to see if Professor Bryant had any projects underway that could use volunteer help. Ben had just taken on evaluation of six adhesives proposed for the huge wooden minesweepers featured in WoodenBoat recently. The Navy had decided that if they could glue together the two layers of planking that make up the hull, they could reduce the number of ribs without sacrificing strength. The adhesive needed a substantial pot life with enough setting time to allow adjustment of the planks and fastening after application. It had to gap fill, because bending the large planks left significant voids on either side of a tight curve. Clamping was impossible, so lowpressure bonding was essential. Ben and Rollo began a series of tests on the six samples, varying wood water content, ambient t e m p e r a t u r e , a p p l i c a t i o n t i m e s , glueline thickness, pressure, types of wood, and wood grain orientation. They subjected test blocks to total saturation in a vacuum chamber and dried them in a kiln, producing cracks and checking not even seen in driftwood. Epoxy fell by the wayside early, unable to meet the flexibility requirements, demanding dry wood, and calling for clamping. T h e w i n n e r was a p h e n o l - r e s o r c i n a l formaldehyde mix from Koppers Chemical. The consistency of cookie dough and the color of swamp mud, it stuck tenaciously no matter what they did to it. It used no petrochemicals and was cheap. It was easy to mix, non-toxic, and could be cleaned up with water. A n d as an unexpected side benefit, the glue gave up water as it cured. Working with bone-dry or well-seasoned wood, this characteristic could cause warping, but with green or wet wood it was excellent. About this time, Rollo came upon builder inventor J i m Brown's work in Burundi and Tuvalu, teaching local builders constant-camber building to produce inexpensive boats. Ben's experience in the Third World suggested that this excellent new adhesive they had just tested would be even more adaptable to local conditions than Brown's epoxy. To test the idea, they bought member Dave Lefebvre's book on strip building and the plans for P o o h , a small round-bottomed rowboat he designed for the technique. Paul F o r d , a retired professor and friend of Ben, brought his strip-building expertise and his friend Rowland Messer to the boatbuilding project. Later, as time began to run out, they got help from a graduate student searching for a thesis topic. The finished boat was painted inside and out with the glue, making it as homely as it was durable. Ben is still testing it at his Port Ludlow home, rudely hauling it down a gravelly beach for almost daily rows. He hasn't found any problems yet after a year of hard use. However, the boat had limitations that made it impractical in Third W o r l d environments. It took moulds and careful setup. It used materials like staples; machines like staple guns. A lot of spiling was needed. It needed good wood, veneers local builders would need to import. The team decided they needed a technique that used local, undersized wood, no moulds or forms, no paint or fiberglass, no major sawmill, and unskilled labor. In fact, the partners decided that labor was their most plentiful resource and scrapped the idea of western labor-saving techniques, substituting people for machines wherever possible. Their new application would focus on making boat sections, that only needed a flat surface. They were making artificial lumber. Using chunks of Douglas Fir 4 to 6 inches in diameter, Paul used a simple rig on a bandsaw to first square the log and then slice it into 1 1/2 inch
by 1. 8 inch pieces 30 inches long resembling lath. The technique makes 80% of the wood useable, prodigious efficiency when compared to other techniques and important where wood is scarce Paul then glued the laths together in two diagonal layers on a flat surface and wrapped the two-layer plank in an airtight envelope of plastic sheeting and reusable sealant. Extracting the air with a vacuum pump made from an old refrigerator compressor, the A T T A researchers (it's hard to keep from referring to them as the " A T T A Boys") found that even half an atmosphere gave them 7 psi It was all the
Building A Puget Sound Racing Fleet with a Classic East Coast Boat The Yankee has more pedigree than an entrant in the Kentucky Derby. It began in 1937 with a committee of prominent New England yachtsmen representing waters from Narangaset Bay to Cape C o d . They were looking for one class that could be raced all over New England in conditions from the prevailing light winds and easy swells of Massachusetts Bay to the smoky breeze and steep chop of Nantucket Sound, and everything in between Their goal was a boat that would be competitive with the local fleets of "Herreschoff S," "Wianno S r . " and "Herreshoff 15" classes, and become a class so popular there could be New England inter-club races It was to be made in the U . S . A (Bruce Springsteen, your yacht is ready). In the height of the Depression. New England yachtsmen had the gall to spend their dollars in Norway and Sweden when New England yards needed their business. Besides all that, it had to be about 30 feet long, relatively cheap (about twice the cost of a Star), and have good resale value. The Committee sent out these particulars to the designers of New. England and received 19 proposals! They included submissions from John Alden, the Concordia C o . . S.S. C r o c k e r . B.B. Crowninshield, Eldridge-Mclnnis, Fred D. Lawley. and Sparkman & Stevens.
pressure they needed for perfect adhesion. It also adapted to slight irregularities in wood thickness that make mechanical clamping impossible. Though vacuum technology like this is an advanced concept, the materials are generally available and the techniques easy to learn. Ben's travels have shown him the ubiquitous presence of plastic sheeting, and that a secondhand retired refrigerator pump is within the capital resources of a village. The group is now well along on their second project, a small 14-foot dory made from Prof. Ford's first panels. Subsequent designs may
The designs (anonymous) were hung in a room in Boston for several weeks where all interested sailors were invited to view them and offer comments. There was a sign on the door, "Please Leave Brass Knuckles and Blackjacks Outside." Next, a consulting team of W. Starling Burgess, L. Francis Herreshoff, and Frank L. Paine reviewed the designs. Out of the 19 submissions, two were chosen as most promising. T h e consultants revised them and came up with a final design. This was possibly the only successful Yankee joint effort since the Declaration of Independence. Yankee I was built by the Britt Bros, of Saugus, Mass., launched in September '37. On the day of her launch she participated in her first race in Marblehead and beat everything afloat. The boat is slim and has fairly generous freeboard. The lines are easy, the bilge is firm at midships. The keel is reasonably small, the overhangs are modest. There is flare above the waterline at the bow, and a curved raking ransom. The rig is tall and all inboard. There is a low trunk cabin, and deep, long cockpit. H o w much of the "design" was Burgess, Herreshoff, Paine? W h o wore down whom? Did hey cooperate before? D i d they speak to each other afterward? W h o designed the two schemes hey liked best? The secrets died with them, and we are left with our own guesses on the interplay between three genius yacht designers. Bill V a n Vlack is an electrical engineer who recently arrived in Seattle from New Mexico. He had more experience in chili design than sailboat
include a v — bottom catamaran and a doublechined dory specially designed by Rowland Messer specifically for the new technology. D r . Bryant is excited by the prospects. He's going to confer with J i m Brown about trying the new adhesive in his projects as a substitute for epoxy. Ever a practical man, he feels that the problem with technology is that the people who invent it don't know how to apply it. "Paul and I are the last of a breed of 'hands-on' engineers, people who are more interested in solving problems than working in labs. Today the U n i v e r s i t y turns foreign students into
researchers and technologists who return to their own countries unsure of how to use their knowledge to help their people." He feels that technological advance should find ways to meet human needs. At the Center for Wooden Boats, we've always had a special affection for 'the old masters.' We count on them to tell us how things were done in the past so we can carry on the traditions and techniques today. Ben, Rollo, Paul and Rowland are doing that idea one better: taking the knowledge of a lifetime and applying it to something new.
design, but he bought a houseboat and then promptly began dreaming of a sailboat to moor alongside. Bill was looking for a big daysailer with some turn of speed, classic lines, and capable of camping cruises—wood, of course. He had no choice. Bill, after all, is a C W B Trustee and Treasurer of the Board. He shopped around and kicked the tires of 32-foot P . C . ' s and 36-foot Evergreens, and Six Meters. Bill heard of Yankee One designs. There was one in Lake Union and he even checked out some in Boston and Cleveland. But he was reluctant to buy one. They are a New England design and product, and Bill had in mind something related to the West Coast. Then Bill found out that a lot of Yankees were shipped to San Francisco. In addition, six were built there between 1948 and 1952. San Francisco Bay is a wild pond in the summer. A Yankee with her stability and length was at home in the Bay's chop and bluster. Bill began rethinking the Yankee. Finally he decided it would be nice to build up a class in the Northwest. He looked in California and found two for sale at reasonable prices. So he bought them both. Bill is keeping #5, Yankee Doodle, and is selling #1, Venture. #2, Tarfon, is also in L a k e U n i o n , #4, Yankee Clipper, is in Anacortes, and Sirocco is homeported in Port Townsend. C a n a racing schedule be far behind? H o w does Bill characterize his Yankee? "She performs well in all weather, has a balanced helm, draws admiring comments, is moored next to my houseboat, and fits under the bridges to Lake Washington. I love it!" — D i c k Wagner
Good Neighbors C W B ' s neighborhood is an anomaly of uses. There is an amazing mix of retail and wholesale, a large publishing company, warehouses, offices, and a growing flock of restaurants. We are surrounded by a busy working harbor, a freeway connecting Canada with Tierra del Fuego, and a freeway exit and access system which handles 70,000 vehicles per day. What a pleasant relief C W B provides — little
the end of Henry Pier, on the east edge of the Center. This is a 96-foot wooden vessel, designed as a seagoing cargo-carrying tug for the U . S . A r m y by O . A . Siegley of Seattle in 1943. A l l the cabins for a crew of 14 were designed on deck. This vessel is fully operational and set up as a "bunk and breakfast." There is a fireplace, bar, conversation pit, hot water heat, fantastic view of the lake, and it's only a few steps from C W B . The skipper, Jerry Brown, is as comfortable as an old sweater. Once you get there, Challenger is a hard place to get away from.
A S c h o o n e r Sail for Y o u A Treasure Sail for C W B The 100' schooner Adventuress, designed by B . B . Crowninshield and built in 1913, has been providing sail training in Seattle for 22 years. T h e Center has reserved this fast, handsome vessel for Sunday, May 17, 10 a.m. 'til 5 p.m. This will be an opportunity for hands-on experience handling a 100-ton vessel in Puget S o u n d . We will provide a hearty lunch. This is a fundraising event. Space is limited to 50 C W B members. The charge is $40 per person. Please call C W B , 382-2628, for more information. Better yet, reserve your berth with a payment.
C W B MEMBERSHIP
If your membership is about to expire (see date of expiration on your mailing label), please renew soon! The annual membership dues are as follows: Student/Senior Citizen $ 10.00 Individual 20.00 Family 30.00 Contributing 75.00 Benefactor 150.00 Sustaining 500.00 Please also consider an added donation to help us carry on our exciting programs and complete our Education Center.
boats, sanctuary for ducks and geese, a quiet noncommercial oasis. We just discovered a neighbor who is also in the cozy business. The M.V.Challenger is moored at
CALENDAR OF EVENTS A p r i l 11 DECK CANVASING WORKSHOP 1 0 a.m.-5 p . m . C W B B o a t s h o p T o m Parker, Instructor
T w o of our Geary 18's will have their decks recanvassed by the students. The mysteries of the canvas deck process will be revealed. Cost: $40 for C W B members; $50 for non-members. A p r i l 12 C W B SPRING R E G A T T A 1 0 a.m.-6 p.m., C W B Site
The Rites of Spring at C W B , focusing on bringing your boat, sharing our boats, racing, yarning, and enjoying our digs. Special features will be racing, awards and the famous potluck lunch at 2 p.m. O u r potluck always brings outstanding dishes. We will have a pasta salad competition. The winner receives a special prize. A p r i l 17 CWB MONTHLY MEETING 8 P.M., C W B Boatshop
Capt. K e n Reynaud will give a talk about his many years of experience in commercial sail. Capt. Reynaud was in charge of the restoration of the ship S T A R OF INDIA and will show a film of this major preservation feat. A p r i l 18 & 25 SAND-CASTING WORKSHOP 1 0 a.m.-4 p . m . e a c h d a y , C W B B o a t s h o p
Professor Paul Ford will teach basic foundry know-how in the first session. Students will cast simple forms. T h e second session will involve more complex casting, including Prof. Forddesigned rowlocks for our exhibit boats, cost: $40 C W B members; $50 non-members. Limited to 12 students.
A p r i l 22 SLIDE T A L K O F S C H O O N E R SAILING 7:30 p . m . , C W B B o a t s h o p
M a y 9 & 10 OLYMPIA WOODEN BOAT SHOW Percival Landing in Olympia
N a n c y Bollinger of Sailing A d v e n t u r e s manages hands-on schooner charters to the Sea of Cortez, San J u a n Islands, and Canadian Gulf Islands. She will give a free slide talk about these voyages & activities involved. For more info: Sailing Adventures, P . O . Box 19444, Seattle, WA 98109, 206-284-2491.
The 8th Annual Wooden Boat show will be held on Saturday May 9 and Sunday May 10, at Percival Landing in Olympia, located at the southern end of B u d d Inlet in Olympia. T h e r e will be m a r i t i m e d i s p l a y s and demonstrations, arts and crafts booths and concession stands. Information on registration for boat participation, and for arts/crafts and concession participants may be obtained now by writing to the Olympia Boat Association 611 N o r t h Columbia N o . 4, Olympia WA 98507, or call 352-0694. A l l registration forms are requested to be submitted by April 15.
A p r i l 24, 27, 28, & 30 A n d M a y 1, 4, 5, 6, 7, & 8 LAPSTRAKEW O R K S H O P 6:30 p.m.-10:00 p . m . e a c h e v e n i n g ,
CWB
Boatshop Eric Hvalsoe, Instructor
At last, a workshop for insomniacs. The class will build a 9 1/2-foot Norwegian pram in ten weekday evenings, and gain the knowledge to build a plank-on-frame boat themselves. Basic woodworking skills are required. Cost: $325 for C W B members. $360 for non-members. Limited to 6 students.
M a y 9 & 16 INVESTMENT CASTING WORKSHOP 1 0 a.m.-4 p . m . e a c h d a y , C W B B o a t s h o p
May 2 BASIC W O O D W O R K I N G FOR W O M E N 8:30 a.m.-5:00 p . m . , C W B B o a t s h o p C h a r l i e M a s t r o , Instructor
M a y 11, 13, 18, & 20 BASIC W O O D W O R K I N G FOR W O M E N 7 p.m.-9 p.m., C W B B o a t s h o p Charlie Mastro, Instructor
A n o t h e r women only w o r k s h o p . G a i n knowledge and confidence in wood working from an experienced cabinet maker. Cost: $50 for C W B members; $60 for non-members. Limited to 6 students.
The class will build their own tool boxes and gain skills and experience with hand tools. Cost: $60 for C W B members; $75, non-members. Limited to 6 students.
May 2 & 3 PEDAL POWER P O T L A T C H 1 0 a.m.-5 p . m . e a c h d a y , C W B B o a t s h o p
A gathering of alternative human powered boats — ingenious, creative, and many unbelievably fast. The public is invited to talk to the creators and try out the boats.
Learn the lost- wax method of casting delicate details. Another hands-on program taught by Professor Paul F o r d . $40 C W B members; $50 non-members. Limited to 12 students.
M a y 15 CWB MONTHLY MEETING 8 p.m., C W B Boatshop
After all the media hoopla on the America's C u p aren't we all experts on high tech sailing? To keep us on the cutting edge, Jay Spearmen, Naval Architect, will give a slide talk on "Scientific Advances in Sailboat Design and Performance."
CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING F O R S A L E : 1928 26-foot double ender. Original 6.8 hp Easthope. Runs excellent. Alaskan yellow cedar on oak, no rot. Completely rebuilt. $5,000. T o d d Powell - 839-4405. C W B G A R A G E SALE: • L o w r y electronic organ with teak wrap-around bar. • 1924 electric stove-oven • X e r o x copier •Assortment of boats M a k e us an offer - 382 B O A T WANTED: •2 hp electric motor •High-pressure (up to 1000 p.s.i.) water pump. •A c o p y of Practical Yacht Joinery, by B r u c e Bingham. C W B will profusely thank the donors of any of the above, and give them a tax refundable donation acknowledgement letter. F O R S A L E : 12-foot W o o d e n J o h n Boat, builder J o h n M. C a m p b e l l , 206-776-2856.
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F O R S A L E : 1976 V o l v o Penta Diesel Engine, M C 2 8 , 25 hp. N e v e r been used! $3,000 or best offer. G a r y C a s s e l , E . 11403 16th, S p o k a n e , W A 99206. P h o n e : 509-926-3633 or 509-487-9379. F O R S A L E : 11'6" C e d a r Lapstrake Admiralty Skiff, with oars, spars, and sails. T h i s boat was the first of several built by S a m C o n n e r in Port T o w n s e n d in the late 70's. Excellent condition. $2,000. Please call 206-322-8852 for appointment. FOR S A L E : Concordia Sloopboat, F I L S A D E R . $ 6 5 0 0 or best offer. T h i s is a great cruiser for day sailing and camping. See W o o d e n B o a t N o . 55, p. 88 for more details and photographs. Contact builder/owner A h o i M e n c h , at 503-657-6110. FOR SALE: 30'6" Y a n k e e one Design, VENTURE. J o i n the growing Northwest fleet. Bill V a n V l a c k - 206-545-1467 days, 206-323-6002 evenings. C O N G R A T U L A T I O N S , C W B o n another growth year. We are representatives for C r u i s e Aire heat p u m p s , sales and service. Packaged systems for any size boat. Allen C o m m e r c i a l
M a y 17 SAIL A D V E N T U R E S A day of sailing aboard the 100-foot schooner, ADVENTURESS $40 per person. For more information, 3 8 2 - B O A T . J u n e 1, 3, 8, & 10 DOVETAIL STOOL WORKSHOP 7 p.m.-9 p.m., C W B B o a t s h o p Charlie M a s t r o , Instructor Students will learn hand tool joinery and keep the finished stool. Basic woodworking skills are a must. $65 C W B members; $80 non-members. Limited to 6 students. M a y 30 SMALL BOAT SHOW IN C O B B L E HILL 10 a . m . - 7 p . m . F o r those who missed were about 40 small excellent craftsmanship, canoe model, through
'DOWNTOWN'
last year's show, there boats, demonstrating ranging from an Indian rowing shells, canoes,
kayaks, prams, and dinghies, up to a 25-foot sailboat. T y p e s included a Whitehall, Wayfarer, Kingfisher, Firefly, Sprite, P e a p o d , Lady Slipper, Yngling, as well as original designs. Related exhibits included a sailmaker display, new a n d used nautical books, a naval architect's exhibit, a children's boatbuilding booth, camping gear, food concession,hand-held communications display, as well as R . C . M . P . Safety and Rescue demonstrations. (We are looking for more of the same, plus a knot tying expert, a leather worker, M O R E M U S I C I A N S , chanty singers, paddle and oarmakers, model boats, more students' boats, more Indian canoes, anything nautical!) A l l this happened on a warm M a y day under picnic umbrellas, on blankets spread under the trees - or at the pub across the street! F o r further information: Betty L o r d i n g and T o n y Balding, B o x 132, C o b b l e Hill. B . C . V0R 1S0, C a n a d a . T e l e p h o n e : 604-743-4741 or 604-7434617.
"Dressing For Success" And The Eighteen-Foot Rowboat by C h a s Dowd Winter is a good time to philosophize about boating. If you own a small boat, philosophizing is all you can do about boating. In one of these philosophic intervals, Stroke O a r and I came upon a major advantage to small boats, one that's seldom discussed in yachting magazines. We were walking in the park, watching hordes of joggers, skateboarders, and bicyclists. It suddenly occured to us that you don't need any special clothes to go rowing. A lot of people seem to think boating is dangerous, but you don't have to wear a helmet while you're doing it, or rear-view mirrors that clip to your glasses, or a strobe light on the back of your belt. Y o u don't put on snug, shiny tights made out of an oil well that make you look like an insect (a pretty sexy insect sometimes, but an insect nonetheless). Y o u don't need to pad every protuberance with foam rubber or ace bandages. There is one place rowers could use protective gear, but it's hard to fit. If you're thinking that gloves are easy to fit, you simply haven't rowed far enough to find out where the really bad blisters develop. Most of our rowing gear is designed to keep us warm and dry. In Seattle, that defines just about everything anybody wears anyway. That's not to say that there aren't such things as boat clothes. The Greek Fisherman's C a p is a good example. We have one with an old Royal Montenegrin Yacht C l u b gong on the front, worn
whenever we're ashore to identify ourselves as sailors. W h e n we're rowing, the R M Y C cap is replaced by a grubby little canvas number designed to keep the sun off. Ashore we're the picture of nautical excess. At the oars, both Stroke O a r and I are marvellously nondescript. We learned long ago that if you look too much like the O l d M a n of the Sea, people will ask difficult maritime questions. L i k e how to read the damn chart or which side is starboard or how many apostrophes in fo'c's'le. Thinking about clothes and their effect, we were reminded of our old friend Matthew Farragut Halsey. W h e n he was three, his mother put Matt in a sailor suit and he contrived to stay in it the rest of his life. To him, the word "tie" was a verb, never a noun, Matt was slightly saltier than Lot's wife. Likely lassies looked at his keen grey eyes with the little crinkles in their corners from staring over the sea and yearned. They looked at his physique, hardened by much hauling on sheets and braces, tanned as brown as walnut, and mentally swooned. They looked at his beard and considered. Then they looked at his tar-
streaked Levis, his lumpy, marline-mended sweater, his worn deck shows, and married investment bankers. Then tragedy struck. Matt caught pneumonia one winter night, jumping overside to hammer a wooden plug into a friend's leaky through-hull fitting. At the hospital, his clothes were taken from him and quietly disposed of. Well-meaning compatriots provided clean jeans, proper shoes, and a few old button-down oxford cloth shirts for his hospital convalescence. He mentioned that he was chilly, and another friend loaned him a tweed jacket to wear around the halls. Nobody but Matt even noticed the nurse who seemed to spend all her free time at the nursing station across from his room. N o t until she announced herself as his fiancee. Today Matt has a house in the suburbs, a dog, and a mortgage. One of the lads who loaned Matt some of the garments for his hospital stay put it pretty succinctly. " A s long as he dressed like a sailor, no self-respecting woman would have him. The minute he looked like a husband, he was." Clothes make the man.